Author's Note: Currently in process of a re-write. Chapters 1-6 completed. Thank you for your patience. Updated Dec 7.

Chapter 1

"Please accept me as your apprentice! I'll do anything!" My eyes widened as a short gasp of air escaped my throat. Looking around at the other pastry chefs, I wasn't surprised to see them snickering at my situation. Quickly glancing back at the young man who was on his knees with his face and both hands on the floor, I slowly narrowed my eyes.

"Do you even know what you're asking?" The aspiring chef looked up to me and nodded his head feverishly. "I don't think you do. Famous chefs have come into this kitchen asking to work under me but I rejected them all. What makes you so special?" He momentarily looked away, biting his lip as he looked around the kitchen. The blondie hastily stood up and made himself comfortable at one of the unused stainless steel tables in the corner. Deciding to leave him be, I wrinkled my nose as I returned to my station to finish my mille-feuille.

"Um, Natsu? Are you really going to let him use our kitchen?" I dusted the pastry with confectioner's sugar, cocoa, pastry crumbs, and roasted almonds. Then I glazed the top layer with white and brown icing stripes to give it an elegant appearance. Out of the corner of my eye, Lyon was still staring at the blondie, which was beginning to annoy me.

"Does it really matter? If he screws up, he'll be out of here in no time." Hearing the snowy-haired sous chef sigh, I glanced over to see him rub his forehead.

"You know Erza will have something to say if our food cost goes up right? She's been on our asses about maintaining it below 25%." Not really seeing it as a big issue, I took the mille-feuille and delicately placed it on a small, white plate.

"That's not my problem. If she expects us to do our best, then she needs to understand that we're bound to make mistakes from time to time. And when I say we, I mean you guys."

"Very funny. Don't say I didn't warn you." I brought my head back up to see him finally walk back to his station as the kitchen door opened up revealing one of the maids.

"Is the pastry ready yet?" I brought my attention back to the mille-feuille, aware that she was here for it. To finish, I positioned a bright red strawberry on the side for the pastry to appear aesthetically pleasing. "It looks so delicious! I think I'll take this to our lovely customer now." When Lucy picked up the dish, I apathetically waited to hear the exchange between the new couple at work. "Loke! Are we still good for tonight?" And there it is.

"Of course my dear. 21:00 right?" She nodded as she opened the door, making sure not to drop the mille-feuille. Looking up at the clock, I couldn't stop myself from sighing when it was only 18:00. Today was definitely a long day. Hmm, it's probably time to take out the pithiviers. I took a pair of dark, green oven mitts that were laying near my station as I strode over to the oven. Once I had the mittens on, I opened the door, which quickly released the boiling temperature that I could feel even through my clothes. Not really in the mood to sweat, I hastily removed a tray full of pithiviers.

"Hey Lyon, these are ready. Make sure you dust them with confectioner's sugar and don't wait too long this time. And then stuff them with filling."

"Got it chef." The slant-eyed man took the tray as I closed the oven and removed the oven mitts, hanging it near the oven.

"Jeez, how do you work this thing?" I stared at the blondie as he placed his right hand on his chin and began to tap it. Was he trying to figure out how to turn the oven on?

"Need some help?" Surprised by Loke's offer, he nodded with such vigor that I almost thought his head was going to fall off. Looks like we have another interesting character in the kitchen. Choosing not to waste any more time, I made my way to one of the sinks and began washing my hands.

"Natsu!" Gazing at the source of the voice, I saw a smile form on Lucy's lips at which I only shook my head as I wiped my hands dry. If she was back in the kitchen, it only meant one thing.

"I'm not going out there. Take my sous chef if they want to thank someone." Glancing over to Lyon, his eyes widened as he accidentally overfilled one of the pithiviers.

"Jeez, really? Do you always have to make me go out there?" Even though he gave a questioning stare, I shrugged him off.

"You know I hate dealing with people." He shook his head as he took off the white apron and laid it on his station.

"Loke, do you mind taking over?"

"Of course not, I'll take good care of your pithiviers." Without another word, Lyon left the kitchen while Loke started to fill the pastries with cream. Suddenly, Lucy quickly closed the distance between us as I raised an eyebrow in confusion.

"Why can't you meet with our clients once in a while? All they want to do is thank you for baking something delicious." Unsure of what to do, I looked over to Loke for help but when he was pre-occupied, I simply rolled my eyes at her. There's no point in explaining myself to someone who wouldn't understand. "Don't you roll your eyes at me!"

"Lucy, leave him alone." When she turned her gaze to Loke, I took this as an opportunity to walk away. I wasn't interested in talking.

"But I don't see the problem. If he's the head chef, shouldn't that be a part of his job or something?" I began mixing choux pastry dough for the beignets while ensuring the consistency was good. After checking the consistency, I slowly poured the mix into a pastry bag.

"If he doesn't want to go out there, you can't force him. He is the head pastry chef of our patisserie and because of that, we've been so successful that we're about to open a second patisserie."

"I know but," When I heard the kitchen door burst open with such force, I looked up to see Lisanna panting at the entrance. What's going on?

"Lucy! We need help out there! It's getting really busy!"

"I'll be right out!" Lisanna definitely looked a bit overwhelmed as she tried to catch her breath. If I didn't know any better, she looked like she was running a marathon. Glancing over to Lucy, she somehow began an eye-staring contest with me. Once it felt like a couple of seconds had passed, I broke eye contact by placing the dough into a pastry bag. I began to pipe them out on a tray as I quickly finished up a row of seven beignets. These should sell really quickly if they're baked properly this time. I watched Loke as I began to remember the time the idiot almost set the pastries on fire.

"Come on Lucy! What are you waiting for?" When her footsteps receded out of the kitchen, I shook my head. What was her problem anyway? And that mini staring contest? Sheesh, she's too much for me. Only a person like Loke could deal with her. After piping out another row of beignets, I heard a small plate placed in front of me. Glancing upwards, I saw not only the blonde chef but also a single moorkop glazed in dark chocolate.

"That actually looks pretty good." As Loke approached us, I studied the station he was leaving to see if he filled the pithiviers. "Don't worry! I already finished them." Satisfied, I focused my attention on the pastry sitting in front of me. Not only was the moorkop partly covered with whipped cream but it also had a piece of pineapple to finish.

"So, what do you think?" Without responding, I took the moorkop and spun it 360 degrees to see if it was pleasing to the eyes. Convinced that it looked good, I slowly took a bite. Immediately, I could taste every ingredient used in baking the pastry. From the warm chocolate to the cool pineapple, everything was a perfect balance. I sat the pastry back down and I could no longer resist the smile forming on my face. This was one of the best pastries I've had among all the chefs that's been in here.

"What's your name?" When I made eye contact with my upcoming protegé, his eyes widened a bit. Guess I caught him off guard.

"Sting Eucliffe."

"Where'd you learn how to bake like this?"

"Back in France when I was attending pastry school."

"I see. Well, we usually start early in the morning so make sure you're back here at 05:00." I grinned at the aspiring chef in front of me as a huge, bright smile formed on his face. When I glanced over to Loke, I wasn't shocked to see his mouth wide open.

"Thank you Mr. Dragneel! I'll be back tomorrow!" He immediately shook my hand vigorously and quickly made his way out of the kitchen. He didn't have to shake my hand that hard.

"I'm surprised you actually took him in considering the hundreds you've turned away. At least he seems excited about being your apprentice." When I suddenly heard screaming outside of the patisserie, I peered over to Loke. "Looks like you made someone really happy."

"You think? And who wouldn't be excited to work for me? I mean, I am the best pastry chef in Magnolia."

"Oh look, your ego is showing." I glared at the four-eyed man when he merely gave a chuckle. "Well, not to say you don't deserve it of course." I shook my head as I looked up at the clock to see that it was 18:45. Guess it's almost time for me to leave.

"Where's Natsu!?" As soon as I heard her voice, I felt irritated when I looked over at the kitchen door as it shot open.

"Erza? What are you doing here?" Lyon's voice came out from behind her as they both walked into the kitchen.

"Natsu, I need you to stay a bit longer. Our business partner who's investing in our second patisserie is on his way here."

"So?" When she gave me one of the biggest glares I've ever seen, I immediately regretted it as a part of me wanted to bite my tongue off for asking such a question.

"That means you need to make every single thing he orders. This needs to go off without a hitch!" Staring at her, I already knew that no matter what I say, she wasn't going to let me go home. Even if I do bring up the fact that I've been here since 05:00.

"All right, all right. I'll stay." I looked away as I wasn't in the mood to see her reaction. She would probably just nod in satisfaction.

"Good. I'll be with him during his visit so do what you're always good at." Looking back up, I was just in time to see her leave the kitchen just as fast as she entered. About time.

"Oh yeah I forgot. My brother is actually the one investing in the second patisserie." Staring at my sous chef, I became intrigued by what was just said. Brother? I didn't even know he had a brother. Wait, why didn't he tell us this before? I began narrowing my eyes at the slant-eyed chef and it didn't recede in strength even when he nervously laughed after noticing my gaze. "He gave me a call the other day saying he was expanding his main company and wanted to invest in a side business. I brought up how Erza was looking to open up a second patisserie but I didn't know he actually got in contact with her."

"No wonder you're working as a pastry chef. You're already well off with your brother so you don't need to worry about money." Loke began laughing, which only irritated the snow man when he formed his own glare.

"Very funny. And just so you know, that's definitely not the case but I'm sure Natsu is getting paid a ton over here." As they turned their attention towards me, I leisurely walked back to my station in an effort to change the topic.

"Shouldn't you two be getting back to work?" I asked as I continued working on my beignets.

"Sheesh, I like you better when we're out drinking." I gave a threatening look to Loke who only raised his hands in defeat. "At least you're more fun and not intense." He laughed at his own joke as he went back to the pithiviers and began placing them on a white plate for clients to buy.

"Natsu! We got our first order from the VIP guest and he's so hot! I think he might be your type!" I almost let the pastry bag slip through my fingers when I could hear a soft snicker come from Loke. Just as I was about to give four-eyes another dirty look, I stopped mid-way when my sous chef looked a bit shocked.

"Wait, you're into other guys?" I began studying Lyon's face, trying to discern whether his question was genuine. That's weird, I thought everyone knew after that one time some guy tried hitting on me.

"Whoa, wait a second Lyon. Don't tell me you didn't know?" As Lyon glanced between us, Loke busted out laughing. The sous chef cleared his throat, obviously annoyed with the way the idiot kept laughing at the situation.

"No, I didn't know. However, the way I think about you hasn't changed Natsu."

"Wait, don't tell me you're in love with flame brain over there?" Rolling my eyes at his dumb question, a red tint began to appear on Lyon's face.

"I didn't mean it like that! I meant in a non-romantic slash respectful kind of way!" When the snow owl tried to compose himself, I couldn't help but chuckle at the sight. Without speaking another word, Lisanna dropped the order at my station and merely giggled on her way out. After scanning the order, I immediately began to make the pastry. This might take a while to prepare since it's basically my pastry. "Hey, uh, Natsu? Is it okay if I see my brother for a bit?" I paused to stare at my sous chef, annoyed that he would ask me such a question while at work. Nevertheless, I nodded my head.

"Yeah, sure. Just be quick about it. There are other clients to take care of besides your brother."

"Will do!" Lyon left the kitchen in such a hurry that it seemed kind of suspicious. Out of the corner of my eye, Loke began getting closer as he tried to read the order on my table.

"Really?" He picked up the order as he scratched the back of his head. "Something so simple?" I instantly had the urge to smack him for saying that but I showed a little restraint this evening.

"Don't undermine the macaron."

"Sheesh, sorry. Which one are you going to make?"

"Probably the rose macaron."

"What!?" When he threw the order back down, I kept my attention on the pastry. "I've asked you to make that for me so many times but you never do. That's not fair. Wait, is it because Lisanna said the guy could be your type?" I immediately stopped my preparation when I incredulously stared at Loke.

"No moron. It's because if I don't do my best, the queen of hell will chew my ass out."

"Yeah but I'm sure it's not as good as a guy doing it." My jaw slightly fell at the joke he just made. Wow, am I really the only one hearing all of this?

"Loke, I didn't know you were a pervert." I quickly glanced over at the door to see if Lisanna was actually there. As I turned back, Loke's face was all red and that's when I began to laugh.

"That timing was amazing." Even when he elbowed my side, I continued to snicker at Loke's situation.

"I didn't know you were still here Lisanna." The maid pouted as she placed her arms on her waist.

"Well, I wanted to make sure you knew to make his latte too."

"Oh, yeah I got it." When he walked back to his station with such a depressed look, I actually had to hold back from laughing any further. It's about time one of the maids found out how much of a pervert he was. I shook my head and looked up at the clock to see it was 19:05. Turning my attention back to the macaron, I decided to put all of my effort into the last pastry of the evening.